As you noticed over the last week I have been updating the blog. New template, new layout and a colour theme through out. I hope you like the new look. Some old posts need updating still but I am working on it when I have free time. Very very slow process.

I also added the recipe list and the 101 Mezze series recipes in the right side column.

For some reason there was a technical problem so some people were not able to comment. I fixed it now (I hope I did!). So if you tried to leave a comment in the last week and you couldn't, I am sorry about that.

I am in the middle of making Mortadella, which I haven't made in at least twenty years if not longer, and was googling how to best do it without total disintegration, since what I saw did not look too promising! Last week, all of a sudden, I had a hankering for Mortadella, so I decided to make it, following, as guidelines, a recipe that I found in a relatively recent Arabic cooking book . How difficult can that be, right? Especially for someone who cooks one month a year, right? Well, November is approaching, isn’t it? Coming onto your blog, I decided to share the above recipe, and as I finished this comment a few hours after starting it, I am glad to say that the results were not bad at all. I’m still here to talk about it, a’int I ? LOL.

However, before I proceed, I would like to share an experience: A few years ago I was watching a cooking show on PBS. I think it was the very renowned Lorenza DeMedici who mentioned, as she demonstrated how to make this excellent dish, that indeed this was a Syrian dish, one of the many culinary influences of the Arabs on the Tuscany region. For some reason, this filled me with a tremendous sense of joy and pride! I know there is a conflict between this and what was written in your blog, but hey .. . we have all learned in recent years how reliable history can be, haven’t we?! .

Ah well, here is the recipe then, and I hope this comes through, because honest to God, I don’t know what I am doing … not much any way. OK:

Sprinkle flour on your work area, and pat the meat sufficiently on top. Sprinkle some pistachios etc. and roll into cylinders. I prefer to wait 15-20 minutes before browning them in butter on all sides This helps them stay intact.

Some people like to weight them down with something. Personally I don’t unless it is very saturated with water since if I do, it may end up tasting like hay, but this step makes them easier to slice thinly.

Enjoy!

Laylakaf

P.S. I am not sure why it says Anonymous, but I asm afraid to touch it since I've had some difficulty posting this. ?

I think it would! I just wish the information was more accessible than it is since it was on one of her 13 part series on PBS. Perhaps you can contact her because I am 99.9% sure it was her, unless she is suffering from Oldtimer’s of course! I will keep your venture in mind, and if I come across anything helpful in that regard, I will I will post it here.

Oh, as you know I had lost this posting, then found it so easily today. Then lost it again, and had to go through history to find it ! I guess I better give up the idea of having my own blog eh?.

Well Doc, better do some more recipe reading. They LOOK great, and I am sure to try a couple..

WHAT A SITE! EVEN IF I DO LOSE MY POSTINGS! I ESPECIALLY ENJOY THE HISTORY YOU ATTACH TO DIFFERENT DISHES. THAT DAWOOD BASHA LOOKS SO GOOD THAT I AM SO TEMPTEDTO TRY IT. THERE ARE SOME RECIPES THAT ADD PINE NUTS TO IT AS WELL, BUT THIS LOOKS MORE LIKE A COMFORT FOOD. TIME FOR COMFORT FOOD! NOVEMBER IS COMING.

OH AND BY THE WAY, NOT THAT I I AM SAYING THERE IS ANY CONNECTION WITH THE PASHA YOU MENTIONED, BUT IN MY BOOK IT IS CALLED DAOUD PASHA

Actually yes, I am very seriously thinking of starting a blog, but don't know the first thing about it! I did attempt informing myself on line, but with a combination of poor health (am on chemo and other meds) and total ignorance, I find it a little hard to start or I should say to educate myself. Like, are there any special rules, regulations, legalities etc. that you have to adhere to? Do you have to be educated in computer languages and such? Do you have to use special software .. You see, I don't know the first thing about it .. Any help I can get from any one will be so greatly appreciated .. and then may be I WILL have a blog .. lol

P.S. I don't even know how to find my postings! lol Just saw your answer by coincidence when I posted the note on Dawood Basha.

Starting a blog is very straight forward. There is no special rules or regulations. You need to keep within the law and you will be fine. Although still very rare, but you hear more stories about bloggers taken to court for claims they made or things they wrote. So if you are going to make claims about people or organisations be prepared to back it up. Apart from that write whatever you like.

There are few blogging platforms that you can use as hosts for your blog. The most popular are www.blogger.com and www.wordpress.com

Wordpress blogs looks better and more professional and it gives you more options, but it is more complicated to use. Blogger on the other hand doesn't look as good but very simple to use and good for starters and computer novice.

Read some reviews on line before you decide which one to use. I started with Blogger and now I wish I used Wordpress. It is very difficult to move your blog later on especially if you have regular readers and people start to add links to your blog.

I hope this is helpful. and please don't hesitate to ask me any question.

Thank you very much KANO. It is certainly a start. It might be much easier than anticipated, but once I know where to look it will be much easier. At least I know where to look now. The other day I joined something, turns out it was an outfit to claim your postings, the idea of which I found very interesting but I guess it is for people who are more sophisticated than I am, and anyone would be at this stage, but that is where blogging intimidated me ..

Thanks again especially for offering more help.

P.S. By the way, this might have something to do with your technical problems, but every time I click Post Comment, it says Your request could not be processed. Please try again. It does go through on the second trial though.

Also, I thought you might want to "plagiarize" the Mortadella recipe I posted. . How does it go, do you try them first before posting them as recipes, or do you just leave it to chance for someone to find them. That recipe I posted is not bad at all if you are interested, and since I referred to its being taken from a book, would that not cover legalities? But as I mentioned in a comment I wrote on Arabic Bite(( am not sure if she posted it or not because apparently she does not post every thing, and chooses what to post), but what I said is that recipes are not patented. (as far as I know, here in NA at least)

Would it be agreeable to you if I contact you directly instead of on the blog regarding if I have a question. I do now, but I don't feel it is very appropriate to ask it on the blog. I guess my e-mail address would be revealed to you, and you are welcome to use it if you agree.